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Once Upon a Time in Venice
| writers = | starring = | music = Jeff Cardoni | cinematography = Amir Mokri | editing = Matt Deizel | studio = Voltage Pictures | distributor = RLJ Entertainment | released = | runtime = 94 minutes | country = United States | language = English | budget = | gross = $735,353 }} Once Upon a Time in Venice (also known as LA Vengeance in the UK) is a 2017 American action comedy film directed by Mark Cullen in his directorial debut, and co-written with his brother Robb. The film stars Bruce Willis, Jason Momoa, John Goodman, Thomas Middleditch, Famke Janssen, and Adam Goldberg with supporting roles by Christopher McDonald, Stephanie Sigman, and Wood Harris. The film was released in a limited release and through video on demand on June 16, 2017, by RLJ Entertainment. Plot Los Angeles-based private detective Steve Ford lives a care-free life. After performing a favor for a friend, Ford runs afoul of a local gang. The gang's leader, Spyder, seeks revenge and steals Ford's dog. In order to recover the dog, Ford is forced into a sequence of convoluted and intertwined tasks across the Venice area. Cast * Bruce Willis as Steve Ford, a Los Angeles private detective whose dog is stolen by a gang. * Jason Momoa as Spyder, a drug lord who forces Steve to do some jobs for the safety of his dog. * John Goodman as Dave Phillips, Steve's best friend. * Thomas Middleditch as John, an assistant in his operation to Steve. * Jessica Gomes as Nola * Adam Goldberg as Lou the Jew, a real estate developer * Stephanie Sigman as Lupe, Spyder's girlfriend. * Wood Harris as Prince * Famke Janssen as Katey Ford, Steve's sister-in-law. * Ken Davitian as Yuri * Victor Ortiz as Chuy * Elisabeth Röhm as Anne Phillips, Dave's ex * Adrian Martinez as Tino, the owner of a local pizza store who wants to help Steve. * Christopher McDonald as Mr. Carter * Ron Funches as Mocha * Kal Penn as Rajeesh, a grocery store clerk. * Emily Robinson as Taylor Production By May 16, 2015, Bruce Willis was cast to star in a comedy playing a Los Angeles private detective whose dog is stolen by a gang. Mark and Robb Cullen would make their directorial debut on the film based on their own script, and they would also produce the film along with Nicolas Chartier, Zev Foreman, and Laura Ford, while Voltage Pictures financing and selling the film at Cannes. In June 2015, Jason Momoa, Thomas Middleditch and Famke Janssen joined the cast of the film, Momoa to play the gang leader who forces Willis' character to do some jobs for his dog, Middleditch to play Willis' assistant in his operation, while Janssen would play Willis' sister-in-law. Later on June 30, 2015, John Goodman, Stephanie Sigman, Adrian Martinez, Kal Penn, and Emily Robinson round out the remaining cast of the film, Goodman playing Willis' best friend, Sigman playing Momoa's character's girlfriend, Martinez playing the owner of a local pizza store who wants to help Willis' character, while Penn would play a grocery store clerk. On July 13, 2015, Adam Goldberg was set to play Lou the Jew in the film. Next day on July 14, 2015, four more joined the cast of the film, including Tyga, Ken Davitian, David Arquette, and Victor Ortiz. Actor Ralph Garman was meant to play a role in the movie, but he revealed on his Hollywood Babble-On podcast that his character was written out of the film when Bruce Willis refused to shoot a scene between them. The Cullen brothers offered him another role, and again, Willis declined to shoot the scene. The next day, the producers of the film stated that the scene needed to be cut, leaving Garman without an appearance in the film. The story mirrored that of his co-host, director Kevin Smith, who had similar stories of Willis' behaviour during the filming of Cop Out. Principal photography began on June 29, 2015, in Venice, Los Angeles. The film was shooting under the working title Going Under. Release In April 2017, RLJ Entertainment acquired distribution rights to the film. It was released in a limited release and through video on demand on June 16, 2017. It was released in the UK as LA Vengeance. Reception Box office Once Upon A Time In Venice was released on Jun 16, 2017 (limited) and totalized 735,353 in combined international box office. Critical response Once Upon A Time In Venice received an 18% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 33 reviews and an average rating of 4.1/10. Metacritic gave the film a score of 28 out of 100 based on 9 reviews, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews". Craig D. Lindsey of LA Weekly stated that Willis' performance was "a sterling example of how a lazy star can make a bad movie even worse." References External links * * * [https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Once-Upon-a-Time-in-Venice#tab=international Once Upon a Time in Venice] at The Numbers Category:2017 films Category:Directorial debut films Category:Films shot in Venice, California Category:Films shot in Los Angeles Category:Films set in Los Angeles Category:Films about dogs Category:American action comedy films Category:Detective films Category:2010s action comedy films Category:Voltage Pictures films